The initial injury report for Cal's Saturday game at North Carolina State was posted Wednesday night, and the Bears again have availability issues at running back, wide receiver and the offensive line, but this week they also have concerns at the inside linebacker spot.
Perhaps the biggest concerns for Cal are starting inside linebacker AJ Tuitele and starting wide receiver Ian Strong, and the addition of running back Ashten Emory to Cal's growing problems at running back. All three are listed as questionable.
FRIDAY UPDATE: There are no significant changes to the initial Wednesday Cal injury report. For North Carolina State wide receiver Jojo Trader was upgraded from "out" on Wednesday to "questionable" on Friday.
North Carolina State also has issues at the running back spot as the Wolfpack's leading rusher, Duke Scott, has been ruled out for the third straight game.
Tuilele is second on the team in tackles, just one behind Isaiah Crosby, but Tuitele leads the team in tackles for loss with 4.5 and is tied for the lead in sacks with three. Meanwhile, another inside linebacker, JD McKinley, who has started three games for Cal this season and is tied with Tuitele for the team lead in sacks with three, is also listed as questionable.
Strong is second on the team in both receptions (33) and receiving yards (467), but he has had injury issues lately. He missed the Wake Forest game two weeks ago and missed some of last week's game against SMU.
Adding to the wide receiver problems are the fact that Jordan King (11 catches, 108 yards) has been ruled out for the game while wide receivers Cooper Perry (8 catches, 111 yards) and Mark Hamper (5 catches, 60 yards) are listed as questionable. The Bears may need to bring some players over from the defense, like they did last week, if Strong, Perry and Hamper cannot play.
The running back situation could be dire this week. No. 2 running back Carter Vargas has been ruled out for Saturday's game an is probably out for the season. Cal's leading rusher, Adam Mohammed, is listed as questionable, which gives him an outside shot to play after missing the past four games with an apparent knee injury.
But now, third-string running back Ashten Emory is also listed as questionable. He has been the Bears' top ball-carrier the past three games, and is second on the team in rushing with 267 yards. If both Mohammed and Emory are unavailble Saturday, Cal is likely to use some defensive players on offense, at running back or wide receiver, as the Bear did last week.
Walk-on Carson Perry-Smith would be next in line at running back, but freshman Tyree Sams and defensive players Kingston Lopa and Niles Davis may see action on offense against the Wolfpack.
Whoever runs the ball for Cal might be operating behind a backup offensive line.
Starting center Bastian Swinney, who missed last week's game, is not listed on the injury report, so apparently he will be back on the starting lineup. However, starting offensive tackle Frederick Williams III and starting offensive guard Tyson Ruffins are both listed as questionable, as is offensive tackle Jimothy Lewis Jr., who has started two games this season.
Cal tight end Dorian Thomas and defensive lineman Nate Burrell have both been declared out again, and it's unclear whether they will play again this season.
Losing running back Scott for a third straight game hurts the Wolfpack' attack. He has rushed for 369 yards in five games, averaging 5.8 yards per carrry, and he has caught three passes for 21 yards.
The Wolfpack might without starting wide receiver Jojo Tader (16 catches, 221 yards), but his status was upgraded from "out" to "questionable" on Friday. Starting safety Tristan Teasdell (17tackles in 5 games) and starting offensive lineman Daniel Cruz. Offensive linemen Yousef Mugharbil and Spike Sowells Jr. have also sstarted games this season, and they have been ruled out for Saturday as well, so NC State will have ffenive line problems on Saturday, too.
Friday injury update | The ACC
Wednesday injury report | The ACC
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This article was originally published on www.si.com/college/cal as Updated Cal Injury Report: Wide Receiver, Linebacker, Running Back Issues for Bears .
